My ford tempo is a 1990 and it was working one day then the next day it snowed outside and the temperature dropped to -1 outside then after that the car wont start again i dont know whats wrong

Asked by Whitney Jan 10, 2015 at 11:04 AM about the 1990 Ford Tempo 4 Dr GL Sedan

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

11 Answers

102,535

Is it cranking over and just not firing up, or do you turn the key and there's nothing?

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102,535

First check your fuses. If no blown fuses, you may want to replace your fuel pump relay. If vehicle not starting, it usually has to do with either no fuel or no spark. You may have a bad fuel pump or a bad coil. If you know nothing about cars, have someone help you to see if you are at least getting good spark. Pull a plug wire, stick a long wire or screw in the end of the plug wire, hold about a half inch from the engine block, crank over the engine, see if a nice blue spark arcs between the wire and the engine block. If spark is very weak, like small and the color orange, replace your coil, cap and rotor, and plug wires. If spark is good, you may not be getting fuel. Remove gas cap, put your ear to the hole, and have someone turn the key to Accessory. Do you hear the fuel pump humming? If not, your fuel pump is bad. Sometimes you can bang on the bottom of the tank, and it will come back to life for a day or so.

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102,535

The Inertia Fuel Shutoff is located in the trunk, on the LH hinge support. Just push the button......

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102,535

I don't know what it looks like. Never owned a Tempo. I just looked up the location on line. Look up in the area of the left trunk hinge. There should be some wires up there. Just follow them. You should find a small box of some sort with a push button. Like up under the base of your back window in the trunk.

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102,535

Here is a video that shows you exactly what it looks like and where it is located. It shouldn't have tripped because it's only supposed to activate during a collision. But you never know.......

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